Happy New Year

As we end the year, many of us are eager to erase 2009 from our memories. We are focused on all of the things we failed to accomplish and all of the things we will accomplish next year. Instead of focusing on our failures let us focus on what we did do this year.

Here are some of my accomplishments from 2009:

• I started doing volunteer work with NY Cares.
• I graduated from IIN as a certified holistic health counselor.
• I ate kale, quinoa and bunch of other foods that I have never tried before.
• I am cooking more than I ever have.
• I eat less junk and processed foods.
• I eat more fruits, veggies and whole grains.
• I am able to identify my trigger foods.
• I know that working out is not an option for me. It not only helps me stay in shape but it calms me like nothing else does.
• I learned that I need sleep to not only function but to make better decisions about my health and well being.
• I learned to give up some of my obsession surrounding food and weight loss.

I would like to wish everyone a healthy and happy new year. Be Well!

GMST Challenge-Day 30

Here it is, Day 30 of my GMST Challenge. So, how did I do?

Sleep:
I need more sleep! I need to pick a time to turn everything off and get into bed; no exceptions. When I am well rested I have the energy to workout and take care of myself. I was not able to reduce the use of the snooze button. I will tackle this once my bedtime is set.
Food:
I have reduced the amount of fast food, junk food and eating out. I plan to try more recipes, cook more and reduce the organic frozen meals that I eat when I don't feel like cooking. I need to remind myself that cooking will nourish me more than a frozen meal will (even if it is organic).
Workout:
I worked out 18 out of 30 days. I would have liked to see more workout days however, 18 is not too bad. I will continue my workouts and will be adding a whole lot of running into my schedule. (I still plan to run the Country Music 1/2 Marathon in April). I started going to yoga on Sunday mornings.
Self Care:
I volunteer, I go to yoga, I workout, I am running again, I have reduced foods that do not nourish me, I go to acupuncture and I am working towards improving my sleep.

Overall, I feel good, more in control and more together. My skin is a little clearer and has a glow. My pants feel a little lighter and my head feels a lot clearer. I can see a little muscle tone coming back to my legs and abs. I learned that I need sleep in order to take care of myself. I feel like my shit is a little more together and that was my goal.

I'll be back in January with another challenge for myself as well as some New Year's Resolutions. Until then, Be Well!

GMST Challenge-Day 28-29

1 more day to Day 30! So here's what's going on with me:

Sleep:
Fantastic! I sleep at least 8 hours every night. Vacation is great :)
Food:
My eating habits are a little looser while on vacation but not bad by any means. I am trying to keep everything in balance.
Workout:
I am averaging every other day while on vacation.
Day 28: Squats w/kickback, plank, pushups and 30 min on the treadmill (incline workout).
Day 29: Rest
Self Care:
I am sleeping well, reading and spending time with the family. Everything is good!

Until tomorrow...Be Well!

GMST Challenge-Day 27

Today is Christmas Eve. I did not workout, I did not worry about what I ate and I did not feel bad about it. I did get lots of sleep, relaxation and family time in today. I wish everyone a very Merry Christmas and Be Well!

GMST Challenge-Day 24-26

Made it to FL! Now for my stats...

Sleep:
Day 24-25: Not good at all. I only had 3 hours of sleep Day 24 b/c my flight was at 6AM the next day and I was up late getting ready. Needless to say, I was exhausted Day 25 and extremely cranky. I ended the day with a killer migraine-like headache. I will do better now that I am on vacation.
Day 26: I felt well rested.
Food:
Day 24: What a crazy day. I was so busy at work and I had to do a million things to get ready for my trip. With all of this craziness I did manage to eat very healthy. Again, I had a TON of veggies (kale twice in one day!). Trying to use up all of my food before I left town worked out to my advantage.
Day 25: Since this was a travel day I came prepared. I had a Lara Bar and an apple with me to hold me over until I arrived in Florida. These came in handy with all the delays that came up.
Day 26: Mom and I started out the day with breakfast at Let's Nosh. I had challah french toast and it was fabulous. I would definitely go back to this place. Lunch was at La Nopalera with a friend from high school. I had beans, rice and part of a chicken quesadilla. The food was delicious and so cheap. Another place I would visit again. Dinner was pasta at home with Mom.
Workout:
Day 24-25: No time.
Day 26: I did 3 sets of 12 lunges per leg, 3 planks (2 @ 45 seconds and 1 @ 35) and some hamstring exercises. For cardio I jogged/walked on the treadmill for 30 minutes.
Self Care:
Day 25: I brought food with me and was not subjected to unhealthy airport food.
Day 26: I dragged my Mom to Whole Foods and we stocked up on veggies. My mom is not a big veggie eater and neither are my brothers. I am going to try out a few recipes on them while I am here and hopefully convert them. I'll let you all know how it goes. 

Until tomorrow...Be Well!

GMST Challenge-Day 23

What a productive day! I woke up at 8:30 and immediately threw on my boots and coat and went outside to see the snow. It was beautiful!

So here's how I did today...

Sleep:

Nothing to report. I feel rested today.

Food:

I had the last of my Trader Joe's pumpkin pancakes and coffee for breakfast. For lunch it was all veggies. (I am going out of town and I am trying to use what I have in the frig.) Also, I knew I was going out for dinner and I wanted to keep it light. For dinner my friend and I went to York Grill. The food was great! We shared Crispy Spring Rolls (shrimp and vegetable spring rolls with a sesame seaweed salad and three dipping sauces). These were ok, nothing spectacular about them. For my main course I had Grilled Atlantic Salmon (served over a crispy Idaho potato-bacon-arugula cake topped with a shaved carrot salad with a drizzle of arugula emulsion). This was amazing. I wish I had taken a picture. I had a glass of Sauvignon Blanc with dinner. Not my favorite white wine but is was good. For dessert we split a molten chocolate cake w/a scoop of vanilla ice cream. This was quite yummy. Overall, I really liked this place and definitely plan to go back.

Workout:

Yes, I finally worked out today!!! I did 90 minutes of weight training at home including stretching and foam rolling. Woo hoo!! To get cardio benefits I threw in jumping jacks, random dance moves and I didn't rest between exercises.

Self Care:

I was able to get a lot of things checked off my list. One more day at the office and then I am off to Florida to spend the Holidays with family. Yea!!

Be Well!!

GMST Challenge-Day 20-22

I know, I haven't posted in 3 days but I have been slammed at work. We have been pretty slow and then all of a sudden, madness!! To make things worse most of my staff is taking off for the Holidays, including me so we are way behind. I actually went into the office today to get some work done. But enough about work, let's talk GMST!

Sleep:
I have made an effort to get to bed at a decent hour and I have been doing pretty well. I have been getting up on time if not early too. Yeah me!
Food:
With all of the stress you would think I would be eating everything that isn't tied down...but I'm not! After all of the meat eating and other randomness from earlier in the week my body was craving veggies!  
Day 20: I made quinoa, steamed veggies and a veggie burger for lunch (told you I needed veggies!).   
Day 21: I had more steamed veggies over couscous w/a tuna burger. 
Day 22: I had a vegetarian burrito bowl from Chipotle.
What can I say, I like my veggies :)
Workout:
When I am slammed at work the first thing to go is the workout.
Day 20-21: I added some walking to my commute but did not make it to the gym.  
Day 22: I did quite a bit of walking while running errands.
Self Care:
Uh...no time! I have to work on this.

Tomorrow I have more work to do but luckily my software at home is fixed and I will not have to go into the office. I plan on going to my 8:30 AM yoga class unless they cancel due to snow. Either way, I will get some kind of a workout in tomorrow. Until then...Be Well!